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What is the "right" age to get my little guy fixed?

Alright so I went and searched this topic on CT and there are a few different answers and I am not really clear on it. So I'm just going to tell you about MY situation and ask for your advice. Fletcher just turned 5 months. Personally I'm glad I have a boy because this issue is way more complicated with female dogs.

1. I have to get Fletcher fixed for a number of reasons, the adoption contract, we know nothing about his heredity things etc.

2. I have known Fletcher only has one testicle since I got him. My vet has checked and rechecked not turning up Fletcher had some x-rays done a bit ago and because they were of his tummy the vet noticed hey I still don't see two LOL but she said x-ray wasn't always the best way to tell for testicles.

3. I do NOT want any marking behavior....he has done so well with not having me cleaning up too much pee or poop. I could careless about the humping (which he has not done yet) I will just give him something better to do.

So here's my questions, my vet says I can do it at 6 months or wait a longer. Do it now and during the surgery they will "look" for the other testicle, or wait and see if that "other' testicle will show up. Which we both think is unlikely but who knows. Waiting to me is risky only because of the marking issue. He is NEVER unsupervised, and the only unfixed dog in the whole family. Plus with only one testicle LOL I'm kidding I know it could happen.

Generally, I am not a "oh not my baby" kind of parent. My youngest son has had surgery twice both "normal" one day kid stuff. But I understand humans NOT dogs. And my vet has given me the option and I need to do some research to decide, why not start here.

Butters was neutered at 7 months, but my husband and I wanted have him in to be neutered at 6 months. We waited so that we could coordinate being home with him 24 hours everyday for his recovery... otherwise, 6 months would have been the time. Around 5 months, he started marking (not in our house, but did when we visited my parent's house EEEKKK!!) and also started humping his toys (luckily never humans). We cared about the humping because his toys got really stinky, so I was constantly washing them. Also, he started humping my parents' dogs NON-STOP, which got terribly annoying when we visited. Luckily, the humping and indoor marking have stopped since then, but he still marks the trees on the street

I had my first dog, a labrador neutered at 7 months. I had my second dog, a labrador neutered at 8-9 months. He had an undescended testicle that came down right before the surgery. On my 3rd male dog I waited and neutered him at 5 years because I was waiting him out to do the show ring. Personally, if I was only having a pet dog I would neuter between 7-9 months before they get their male hormones. But there is research suggesting you should wait to neuter at 18 months.

Wrigley had his done at 7 months as well. Both his testicles were down by the time he was 4 months old ( so the vet said any time after that was fine. The longer you wait..the more testosterone ...and it takes that much longer for those levels to drop off once they are neutered.

I certainly would not have it done before 6 months of age...but I wouldn't wait till they reach a year old.
Ultimately...this is your decision.

I know there is talk that waiting till a dog reaches totally maturity is best ( since hormones play a role in all areas of growth). There may be some truth to that.
I believe a lot depends on the breed...the bloodline, etc. But that is ONLY my opinion.
I think you have to do what you are comfortable with.

Personally....I have not seen that as an issue w/ any of our dogs..and we have had many over the last 33 years.
Our lab is 108 lbs....lol..very intelligent..and a beautiful specimen of his breed.

* ~ Also..we chose to have their neutering done w/ a lazer. It is much less invasive.. and they heal quicker.

I researched this pretty thoroughly not long ago, for my GR pup. There are several schools of thought, as you've discovered. The newest thinking is that it's good to allow a dog to complete their growing before taking away the hormones. The older school says just get it done around six months. I had hoped to wait till Tucker was about a year and a half but elected to have it done at 11 months because he was getting pushed around by other males (neutered and intact) in the dog park. He's a sweetheart and I wanted to spare him the negative attention. What I learned though is that the surgery is simpler when they're younger and they recuperate a bit quicker. More cauterizing is needed when the dog gets older. At six months it's easier on the pup. Also, if there is an undescended testicle, it is a bit more complicated and invasive. Given your circumstances, I would opt for earlier rather than later with Fletcher. Dog ownership has gotten more complicated in recent years. So many options! So much research!

Ordinarily I would wait, but with an undescended testicle (monocryptorchid) I would do the surgery sooner. If the testicle doesn't descend early on it becomes too large to fit through the inguinal canal, so it won't be showing up.

The body can treat the retained testicle as a foreign body, in humans they run the risk of becoming cancerous, I'm not sure about dogs.

Thanks. I had to run by the vet's office today anyway (to buy HeartGuard- still no Interceptor) I talked to my vet when I was there about this, she was so sweet, she pulled his chart and chatted with me about Fletcher in the lobby. Anyway, she is going to talk to another vet at the practice (more vet opinions the better) but she wants to schedule neutering right at 6 months. Which I think I would prefer now that I have researched this undescending testicle thing more. We put in on the surgery schedule for a few days before he officially turns 6 months next month. My vet wants to do his surgery first so she can have him all day. I'm guessing because this will be a non-routine neutering???? Should I expect a longer recovery time? AHHHHH suddenly I am overwhelmed by my lack of puppy experience. I know some of you are going to think I'm crazy but this sweet loving puppy is harder for me to care for then any of my babies, its because I have always been around babies and not puppies.

I was a nervous wreck when we got Sonny neutered. I think it's natural to be worried, scared, anxious and ect. The hardest part for me was leaving him at the vet. His little face looked so confused and I obviously couldn't explain to him what was going on. I called multiple times the day of his surgery to see how he was recovering. I am sure Fletcher will do great! I don't know much about the undescended testicle, but it sounds like you have a very competent vet that you have a good relationship with.

FYI- We also got Sonny neutered at 6 months and everything went really well with no problems. I got lots of good tips on here about recovery, so be sure to search the threads for ideas. One of the tips that I found really useful was using a baby onesie to prevent Sonny from licking his stitches. The onesie was a lot more comfortable for him than having to wear the cone the entire recovery period.

The descended testicle is in the body cavity, usually a neuter is extremely superficial. Fletcher's surgery will be more like a spay because they have to cut through the abdominal muscles to get through. The recovery won't be bad, equivalent to a spay.